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Date:         Wed, 5 Dec 2001 02:37:42 -1000
Reply-To:     Mick Kalber <hotlava@INTERPAC.NET>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Mick Kalber <hotlava@INTERPAC.NET>
Subject:      new tires on syncro (long)
Comments: cc: syncro@yahoogroups.com
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"

thanks to everyone who gave me advice with my wheel/tire problem. my michelin mxt's were on my syncro when I bought it... two were purchased later than the rest. I know cuz I found a receipt for them. but they all seemed very well matched with good tread on them. swapped out my bad vc a year ago and decided to run the mxt's til they were worn out before putting on tires with a more aggressive tread for off-roading here on the big island (the lava is a bit unforgiving).

had the front end aligned a year ago too, but after rotating the tires about six months ago she's pulling hard to one side. alignment guy says the tread is separating and he can only do so much in the alignment department. but other than a slight pull, tires still seem ok. a few months later, the tread sep on two of the tires becomes critical. daddeo starts to do the hula down the road. time for new tires. sooner than I thought. I had wanted to go with a 15 inch wheel, but lengthy e-mails with derek drew and robert lilley and others convinced me that for my needs I should stick with the 14's until the time comes when I can replace the tranny with a locker and change the gearing.

so I bought five new bfg all terrain t/a ko's in a 27x8.50R14LT. no more jumping or hulaing for daddeo... and she drives straight as an arrow now. guess the alignment guy was right. I was thankful that the spare fit under the car... the tire guy wasn't sure it would. the new tires are quite a bit taller than the mxt 205/70/14's. I have lost just a bit of power, but she rides great now. one of my considerations was not to lose the power I had gained by doing the half-lilley mods to my wbx. so I think I made the right choice. tire shop will do tire rotations free every six k and flats are fixed for free as well. tires have a six year (regardless of mileage) warranty on them. can't beat that. they weren't cheap though... about $665 for five. you guys on the really big island can probably do better than we can out here in the middle of the pacific.

so I now have two good mxt's with a good amount of tread on them. I know they're hard to find. too bad I'm so far away from you guys and shipping would probably be prohibitive, but if anybody is interested, let me know. maybe shawn at imua campers would want them.

a couple more questions... how far off will my speedometer be with these new tires? and is it true than michelin does not make the LTX in a 14 inch. I thought several of you had told me that they did, but the tire shop said they do not. true or false?

so, thanks again everybody for the assistance... I love these lists... I have made much more intelligent choices for my syncro and have much more confidence in dealing with anything that may come up in the future thanks to you volks.

a giant aloha to you all,

Mick Kalber 89 Syncro Westy "Daddeo" Tropical Visions Video, Inc. 62 Halaulani Place Hilo, Hawaii 96720 808-935-5557 808-935-0066 (fax) hotlava@interpac.net http://www.volcanoscapes.com/


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